Recent content by brewSJ

Lactose for me means a sweet "Milk Stout". If that's what you want then fine, but otherwise I would leave it out.

Room temp but sitting on the (cooler) concrete foundation. Right now, that means about 70F inside the fermenter. My Tilt says it free-rises to about 5F over ambient at peak fermentation. I just moved, so we'll see if it gets cooler in winter or not.

Dissenting view -- every time I use S-04 warm (warm being 68F start rising to max 72F according to my Tilt), I get Belgian POF. Clove, spice, the works. I don't know what other people are doing to get this yeast to ferment clean but I've tried it twice, a few years apart, and "clean" is a word...

Personally, I don’t cold-crash or use finings. I just wait for the beer to clear on its own, then rack it to a bottling bucked leaving behind as much of the yeast cake as I can (especially if it's something powdery like Windsor). Takes a bit longer, but it’s one less thing to worry about.

Bottled it yesterday — hydrometer sample tasted really good. The color is a bit lighter than I wanted, but the balance between the hops and the malt is right where I wanted it to be. Reminds me of Sam Adams' Octoberfest actually... Final recipe is pretty much what I started with: 3.0 lb DME...

There's no seeped grain in the recipe -- it will be a real mash, just a small one. The DME supplements the mash because I don't have any way right now to mash 8-10 pounds of grain.

I’ve been asked to make an Oktoberfest beer by a friend for an Oktoberfest dinner. I have two problems though: first, I’ve never brewed an Oktoberfest before and second, I have no temperature control so I can’t brew lagers. What I’ve settled on is an ale brewed with a neutral yeast like...

I’m going to be moving over the summer and I’m wondering how I should deal with my new water. I’ll be on city water [Jersey City] and the good news is the city’s water reports are very detailed: pH 6.92–8.12, Alkalinity 33-78 ppm, Hardness 60-97 (as CaCO3), calcium 13-24, chlorine 70-130...

What's the yeast, a diastatic yeast like Belle Saison or a more ordinary Belgian-type yeast?

The tablets cut in half pretty easily with a sharp knife too, so I do a half-tablet for my 7.5 gallons of starting water. The other half tablet gets saved for the next brew day.

I think that might depend on the yeast. I routinely sample a bottle after 1 week and they’re always carbonated (albeit not yet conditioned). I only use dry yeast though, and the yeast in my fermenter is done in under a week too.

Not a clone, but traditionally a cream ale is 80% base male (generic 6-row or 2-row) and 20% flaked corn. Ferment with a neutral ale yeast (US-05, BRY-97) and hop same as you would a lager. That should be a good starting point at least.

I've done it twice too and I've always been happy with the results. If you're used to beer, though, expect it to get off to a very slow start. A week without airlock activity isn't unusual. Oh, and when it finally does go, it can really take off. I use a blow-off tube until it settles down.

I’ve never done it myself, but personally I would fix it now rather than at the end to avoid oxygenation. Steep the chocolate malt in some warm water (no more than necessary), then remove the grain and boil the water to sterilize everything. Let it cool off, then add it directly to the...

Personal opinion, but I would skip the tea too, especially for a dry still cider. I will grant you probably need more acid to offset the sugar if you back-sweeten, but I like my ciders dry, made from just juice and yeast. P.S. I see you're in Toronto, so that means you have orchards within...